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TERMS & CONDITIONS

Given the current state of the world seed supply, it is more important
than ever that people know how to save their own seed and select their
own strains. We do not deal in hybrid (F1) varieties, so you are free,
and very much encouraged, to save your own seed for the following
year. Instructions are supplied with every packet, and we are happy
to advise by e-mail if you need more help.

However, please note that this seed catalogue is the
sole source of funding for maintaining the Collection - we get no
grants - so while we hope you will keep your saved seed and even pass
it on to friends, we would of course appreciate it if you did not
use it to go directly into commercial competition with the Collection.

Much of our seed is produced by hand, and so is available in limited
quantities. Packets are pretty generous: you should get enough for
a family of three or four in a packet. Seed counts are approximate
- packets are filled by hand, not machine. Sadly, we cannot supply
bulk quantities (there are only two of us !). If you want to grow
really huge quantities, just save your seed using the instructions
supplied and sow as much as you like the following year.

We believe all our seeds are free from disease, breed true, are correctly
identified and truly edible. We want you to enjoy our vegetables!
But we have to say that there is no warranty, express or implied,
as to the type, description, or any other quality of the seed supplied,
and we cannot accept any liability in any way from the resulting crop.

Where we give information about the uses, qualities
or effects of plants, we have researched this as well as we can, and
believe it to be true - but our sources might be wrong, so we can
make no guarantee as to its accuracy. No medical claims are made.
We do take all reasonable precautions to research our plants carefully,
and try everything ourselves before we offer the seed. We steer clear
of things that have to be prepared in weird and wonderful ways to
be edible.

To the best of our knowledge these crops are correctly
identified, safe to eat, and are commonly eaten by large numbers of
people in their country of origin. However, different foods can affect
people differently, and with all new foods, it is wise to try tiny
amounts first, especially if you have a history of allergies to similar
plants.

Biopiracy: It is becoming sadly common for large companies to patent
traditional vegetable varieties, and claim them as their own. The
subject is complex, but we do not believe it is correct to patent
food plants. We reserve the right to refuse membership of our seed
club, and to refuse to supply seed to anyone, without explanation.
Likewise, as policy, we do not supply samples to other seed companies
or individuals involved in the trade.

OUR SEED CLUB

In the EU, there is actually a list of 'official' vegetable varieties. And a law governing seed sellers, which states that if a variety isn’t on the official list, then seed companies cannot ‘market’ the seed to anyone. In an immediate sense, this law only affects us, not you - because there are no laws at all governing the buying of seed or what vegetables anyone can grow. Selling unlisted seed? - that’s against the law. Buying unlisted seed? - that’s completely fine! So we should stress that for you it’s perfectly legal to buy any seed you like, plant it, grow it, and do whatever you want with it.

But this system does affect home gardeners in the long run – because it costs money to put/keep varieties on the official list. So it's only profitable to 'keep listed' varieties that sell in huge quantities to farmers, who have very different needs to home growers - a farmer wants their plants to respond to precise chemical inputs, fruit all at once for ‘once-over’ harvesting, and be tough to stand up to transport and packaging. You on the other hand, want tender vegetables produced over a long season, even during variable years.

It’s just not worth listing seed for home gardeners. Hundreds of thousands of old heirloom varieties (the results of about eleven thousand years of plant breeding by our ancestors) have been lost forever, due to this rather poorly drafted EU legislation.

To address this, we have always operated as a club - 1p of your order pays for a years membership, so we are not selling to the 'public'. But this is no longer enough: As of 2011, the UK is being obliged to enforce the regulations more strictly, with the sweetener that varieties can be added to the National List for a reduced fee if they are labelled as ‘amateur seed’.

To complicate the issue, the legality of the National List system is now being challenged in court, and independently the EU itself is planning to ‘simplify’ the whole thing in 2016. Even worse, the law in different countries is ambiguous as to whether selling seed to home gardeners counts at all!

We have taken legal advice on how best to meet all these requirements and you will now see some packets labelled ‘amateur seed not for commercial exploitation’ which we have been advised meets the requirements of both the EC Directive and the UK Seed Marketing Regulations. We are also working with DEFRA to register our unlisted varieties over the next few years, though the total cost is high, so you will see some varieties dropped - it is simply is not economic to register varieties that only a few people request each year.

REGISTERED OFFICE ETC:

The 'Real Seed Catalogue' is a trading name of a membership-based
seed club organised by The Real Seed Collection Ltd.
This is a not-for-profit company, limited by guarantee: Company No:
5924934
Registered Office: Gadlys, Newport, Pembrokeshire, SA42
0RF. Registered for VAT No 841181938

The Real Seed Catalogue is produced by The Real Seed Collection Ltd , a not-for-profit company limited
by guarantee.
~ Company No 5924934 ~ VAT No 841181938 ~ DEFRA registered Seed Merchant No 7289 ~

Our Unique Structure: Because we have no shareholders. the main aim of the company is not to make huge profits, but instead to supply great seeds to home gardeners at reasonable prices, and to educate people about home seed-saving. As part of our ethical policy, all staff are paid the same hourly wage, including the directors.

Our Unique Guarantee:We have spent years trying to find the best varieties for you to grow. We think these are the best seeds you can sow, and we really hope that you enjoy growing your vegetables from them. We will immediately refund or replace if you are in any way less than delighted with them, even including the flavour of the resulting crop!

Gardeners Should Save their Own Seed: Because none of these seeds are hybrids,you can save your own seed for future use: there's no need to buy new each year. Saving your own is easy. You will get great seed, and great vegetables adapted to your local conditions. Do have a go - read the seedsaving instructions we provide with every order, and also on this site. ~ We have sent out over 104,000 sets of free home seed-saving instructions!~

Our Seed Club:Due to really daft seed laws, many of our fantastic vegetable seeds can only be supplied to members of our Seed Club, because they are not on the EU-approved list of permitted vegetable varieties! But membership costs just one penny per annum.
When we process your order, you will be charged a penny for a year's Seed Club Membership. For more details see our terms and conditions.

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